Hidden Within: Finding the Light
by amblewat
Summary: It has been two months since Daniel succumbed to his haggarium infection, since doom attacked leaving Arus in ashes. The den ship is being built. This is a story of what the force did to prepare for departure and after. Set FDOLA 30th comic setting.K/A, P/OC, D/L
1. Chapter 1

Okay so here is a NEW story arc that is based on the 30th Anniversary comics. I don't know about anyone else but I HATED what happened. So my muse has been going crazy on what to do to make it better. This story starts before the den ship takes off into space and will end on a happier note. Eventually will be HEA for K/A and D/L. Those following Corruption. That story is not abandoned I will be writing both. You will see some similarities between my first arc and this one because I like some of what I wrote in my first arc. So enjoy the ride. This story is for the moment rated T but may be upgraded later.

Hidden Within: Finding the Light

Chapter 1

On Planet Doom:

Haggar was waiting for the doctor to emerge from Lord Dannor's room. She and Lotor had changed Daniel's name. Not drastically, but just enough so that he couldn't have any possible breakthroughs. Lotor came down the hall just as the door opened.

Dr. Horde addressed the prince. "The procedure is complete and Lord Dannor is resting comfortably. It should hold him for a month. After about six monthly treatments, we may be able to reduce the frequency and he would least likely retain his memories."

Haggar chuckled menacingly. "You have done well."

Lotor nodded. "Yes we will begin our next assault in two weeks. Will he be up to it?"

"He should."

"Perfect," Lotor said.

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Allura Raimon Daughter of Arus was officially on a Diplomatic Mission. Unofficially, was another matter altogether. For the first time EVER, she had lied to her husband, Keith. She said that she was going to the west province and would be back in time for dinner. She took Pidge with her leaving the other Lion Pilots behind. Pidge didn't know what she was planning. She simply gave him a sleeping drug in his water after they boarded and took off towards her destination. She needed his brain and hopefully between the two of them they could get some answers.

Hunk was currently working on the construction of the Den Ship and was going to need Pidge soon for the wiring and computer stuff. But she knew they needed more information on Voltronix, which according to all known documentation only existed in myth. However, the Voltron Force knew that it had to exist because of Voltron's power.

According to the First Officer's log on the old explorer ship, pieces of a map to the distant planet were left behind on Voltron-friendly planets. Allura believed in her heart of hearts that there had to be a master copy or another copy of this map somewhere. The first place she was going to look was back on Ariel, in the chamber where Voltron was originally forged.

A small cough beside her got her attention. She turned and saw that Pidge was stirring.

He blinked once…twice…three times. "Sorry Allura. I haven't gotten much sleep. Are we there?"

Allura was grateful that he hadn't checked the scanners first. "Yes we are at our destination. Don't get mad Pidge but…I sort of kidnapped you."

"Huh?" He looked out and saw the forge and his eyes widened in shock. "Holy circuits Allura! Okay…what…no…WHY?"

"Pidge, you and the force need more information on Voltronix. If you think about it, where is the first place you want to look for clues?"

Pidge rubbed his face. "Here. But, how long have we been gone?"

"A couple of hours. We aren't expected home until dinner. We might make it home by tomorrow."

Pidge blanched. "You have no escort…no guards! We have no defense! Keith is going to murder me when we get back!"

"I'll tell him you didn't know Pidge…try to relax. We have to do this. Otherwise this could take years…decades. You're looking for a needle in a haystack."

Pidge sighed. "Since we're here we might as well take a look."

Allura smiled. "That's the spirit."

Allura stepped off the ship and was greeted by Chief Kalan.

"Welcome Daughter of Arus."

"Hello Kalan. I know we aren't expected."

"You are always welcome here." He gestured to the young man beside him. "Daigo will escort you anywhere you want to go."

Daigo bowed to them. "I am honored to be of service." When Kalan left, Daigo gestured towards a dwelling. "First you have to be united with your pride."

Allura didn't know what to reply until the door opened. She bit her lip. The rest of the Voltron Force burst out of the dwelling.

Keith's look was one of annoyance but there was also forgiveness in his eyes. He pulled her into his arms. "Did you think I wouldn't know what you were up to?"

"I'm sorry. I felt like I had to. I didn't want to leave Arus defenseless."

Lance stepped up. "We aren't. Jeff and the Vehicle team are there right now. This is important."

Hunk nodded. "Yup…too important."

Vince scanned the area. "We have to hurry. We don't know what we'll find."

Larmina hugged her aunt. "I had a dream that we had to come here. It was so strange."

Pidge smiled. "I'm glad we are on the same page. Keith, I swear I didn't know about this."

"I know Pidge…trust me if you had. I'd have let you know."

Pidge gulped. His Commander wasn't kidding either.

Keith turned to Daigo. "Daigo can you take us to the forge?"

Daigo's face brightened. "I will do anything you ask. I will do anything to help Voltron. "

Allura walked before the temple. "We need to look at the room where Voltron was forged again. We need to look for clues to Voltronix. Voltron needs to evolve in order to stop Lotor and Haggar."

"Any luck on getting Daniel back?" Daigo asked.

"Not yet," Lance said.

"Have faith he will fulfill his destiny," Daigo said.

Pidge activated his Voltcom. "Let's go team. You realize that we are going to have to complete the trials again?"

"Let's do this!" Keith said.

Daigo sat on a nearby rock while Voltron force went inside.

They made it to Balto's chamber and the circuits immediately started jumping around. Pidge ran around the room this time, avoiding the circuits on the floor and quickly solved the puzzle. They moved into the next room.

Pidge gasped at the blades. "I'm kinda glad I was asleep the last time."

"Just be careful," Allura said.

They all ran. When they came to the other side, they were all gasping for breaths. However, they didn't have time to stop. The square towers started firing at them.

Allura ducked one beam but another one grazed her arm. She grabbed it as they ran.

Pidge threw smart stars at the cubic towers and they were finally able to breathe.

"You're hit?" Keith asked, panting.

"Just a scratch. It's nothing," Allura replied.

Pidge pulled out a white handkerchief from his pocket and used it to wrap around the wound. "That will have to do until we leave."

They went into the next chamber and were bombarded by robots. Luckily, they were very skilled, and quickly disabled the robots. Then, they went to the final room. They expected several pillars to rise from the floor. However, this time around, only one pillar rose in the center of the room. To their astonishment, two Voltcoms appeared.

Pidge took them. "What could this mean?"

Allura shrugged. "I don't know."

Then, the room seemed to glow and a spirit appeared. It wasn't the blacksmith like before but a spirit of a man. A man that Allura recognized. "Aldus!"

Larmina gasped. "Is this real? Father?"

"My daughter… A new Voltron Force must emerge to fight this new evil so that Voltron can once again be whole. The one corrupted in darkness will return to the light. A strategist and flame will join the pride. The strategist lives among prides. The flame dwells on a home crafted from her own. She will ignite the spirit of Voltron from his core and is the gatekeeper of light. You already have the key in green. Together, they will return the destined leader to the light, and unlock the greatest power of Voltron from within him. Black for leadership and courage; Red: fire and spirit. Green for intelligence and perseverance; Blue: telepathy and hope. And Yellow for strategy and strength. Continue to bring hope to our people, my daughter and sister. Farewell."

When Aldus vanished, Allura and Larmina were both crying.

The room was silent like a tomb.

Keith held Allura in his arms while Vince held Larmina's hand.

Pidge walked up to the wall where the picture of the five planets was located. He stared at the energy planet's picture for several minutes. Raising his Voltcom, he began taking pictures of the entire room at varying angles. He then walked in front of a separate display. It stood out from the rest. "Look!"

They gathered where Pidge was pointing. They stared at the small glass case with a piece of a cloth inside.

Allura exclaimed. "This is it! This looks like one of the pieces of the diagram we saw on the explorer!"

Keith examined it. "It does look like it."

Pidge took a picture of it. "Okay…so we found one. Now we have to find the other three. It's strange…I remember seeing something like this when I was little on Balto."

Allura beamed. "Where?"

"I don't remember. It's going to drive me crazy!"

"I'm going to have to mark this on my calendar!" Lance said teasingly.

Keith chastised. "Not now, Lance. Let's focus on what the spirit of Aldus said. That was a lot of garble."

Pidge wheeled around. "A lot a useful garble."

Hunk shrugged. "Sounded like a warning to me. Well…somewhat. I get where he said the one corrupted by the dark will return to the light. He means that we will get Daniel back. But how?"

Allura wiped a tear from her cheek. "A strategist and flame will join the pride. That sounds like more cadets."

When they all left the forge, they were all thinking about what they had just seen.

Daigo walked over to them. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

Keith nodded. "Some."

Daigo nodded and gestured to everyone to follow him. "You should rest. You can continue your journey in the morning. The sun has almost set over the savannah. I'll show you where you can stay for the night."

Allura was too tired to argue and her arm was hurting too. How long had they been in the forge? She looked at her watch and cringed. It was ten in the evening in Arus' time. _Wow! The time really flew!_

Daigo took them to a relatively large brick structure within the compound. "There are many rooms that branch off from this main area here. Just over there, you will find a kitchen; we have food and drink enough for everyone. Through that door is the bathroom. The ladders go up to different rooms with beds." He pointed to the different rooms. "That one on the far left has a single twin bed. The two in the middle have two twin beds, and the one over there with the door has a full size bed. Make yourselves comfortable. I will be next door in my family's home if you need anything."

Keith nodded. "Thanks, Daigo."

Daigo bowed and left.

Larmina yawned. "Well…now what?"

Pidge set up a sensor at the door. "We sleep. If someone does try to come in, we'll be alerted and we'll be on high ground. Lance, Allura, and I have ranged weapons. We should try to rest."

Keith nodded. "I agree. We can talk about Aldus's premonition in the morning."

Lance yawned. "Okay. Keith and Allura, take the room at the end. Larmina, take the single. Hunk with me…and Vince and Pidge in another."

Keith gestured to the ladder and Allura went up first. She climbed through the door and saw that the room was comfortable. It had electricity and a small air conditioning unit. There was a lantern lit on a small dresser by the window. The bed was fitted with a red and blue quilt.

When Keith closed the door, Allura just stood and waited. She knew that he had wanted to talk to her about her little detour.

Keith simply raised an eyebrow.

"Look, before you start, like I told Pidge…you guys need a starting point. Otherwise, you are going to be in space for years…maybe decades. I don't want to be away from you that long. I don't care if you are mad at me and I don't care if I sound selfish. I need you. Arus needs you. I already endured your absence once and…now…" Tears burned her eyes. She turned away.

In two strides, Keith pulled her into his arms. His lips brushed lightly against her temple. "Do you think it was easy being away from you? It nearly killed me. And this mess…I don't know what is going to happen…" He let out an exhausted sigh. "However, after hearing your brother's spirit today…for the first time in months, I felt peace in my heart and hope about our future."

Allura put her arms around his neck. "I want to feel hope again…for us and for our people."

Keith kissed her softly and murmured, "Have faith, my love. Good always wins over evil…always."

Allura didn't say anything else. All she felt was her husband's loving embrace. Right now, nothing else mattered but their love.


	2. Chapter 2

Here is the next chapter. I am going to remind my readers that his is a DIFFERENT story arc than my Evolution arc. Some of the characters and characteristics are similar but the difference is this follows the 30th Anniversary comic book arc and you will see some of the lure you found in the book as well. I know it has been a while. My comp had major issues. Back to weekly updates. Thanks for reading I love the feedback.

HWFTL Chapter 2 VF

Lying awake on the bed, Pidge couldn't get the image of the ancient map out of his mind. Where had he seen that map? Was it on Balto? Why couldn't he remember where? It was bugging him to no end. And sleep wasn't happening.

Checking his clock on the bedside table, he realised it was nearly dawn. Seeing the sun peering through his window, he gave up on sleep and decided he would rather go down stairs for breakfast instead. After taking a quick cool shower to get the grittiness out of his tired eyes, he went into the kitchen. He started a pot of coffee and checked the fridge for basic breakfast essentials. He pulled out some milk and found some cereal and dug in. After demolishing his cereal, he was still frustrated; he dug out his click clacker and began to absentmindedly click the buttons.

"Good Morning, Pidge."

Pidge jumped. "Good morning, Allura."

Allura was carrying the relic they found on Ariel, enclosed in an air-tight glass case. She placed the relic on the kitchen table, in front of Pidge. She then grabbed a cup of coffee. "You haven't slept."

Pidge sighed as he picked it up. "I'm okay. I just couldn't turn my mind off last night. But I figured out part of the riddle from Aldus."

Allura was pouring two cups of coffee when Keith joined them. "Oh?"

"What did you figure out?" Keith asked. "Hold that thought for one minute." He raised his voltcom. "Team briefing downstairs. Now," he ordered.

Shortly after, there were sounds of protests. Vince arrived first, followed by Hunk, Larmina, and then Lance.

"Keith, have you ever heard of the word 'sleep'?" Lance yawned.

Keith ignored Lance's jab. "We have to work out what we learned yesterday. Pidge has an idea."

"That the strategist is Daigo." Pidge said without preamble.

Keith blinked. "He's awfully young."

"Not as young as you think. He's fifteen. I graduated from the Academy at seventeen. He's mature for his age has a strong sense of loyalty. That's more than half the battle there. He may not be ready to take one of the lions until he's twenty but, we can certainly prepare him."

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Later that afternoon, the entire Voltron Force headed to Balto.

Allura flew with Keith in Black Lion. The flight took six hours.

Once in Balto, Pidge immediately pointed them in the direction of a nearby GA base. It was the only place they could land the lions that wouldn't be visible.

Walking along in the city square, Larmina couldn't help herself as she stared at one of the store windows. "That outfit is the ult! Look Auntie!" She exclaimed, tugging Allura's arm.

"The skirt is awful short." Allura frowned at the ensemble that Larmina called an outfit.

While they were walking, Pidge was typing in his holo-PC. He couldn't find any public records of any Baltan relics that looked like the one they found. But he knew he had seen it somewhere. Without any warning, his Baltan phone beeped an incoming call. He had never been in range to accept a call. He could only receive voice mails or e-mails on the thing. He answered. "Hello?"

"Pidge! Holy Circuits! You're in town! Why didn't you tell me?" Pidge had to hold the phone away from his ear because the person on the other end was squealing in delight.

The whole team watched as Pidge grinned from ear to ear.

"Hey Cal! Good to hear from you. Belated Happy birthday." He finally put the phone against his ear.

"Are you free this afternoon? I can get out of here early meet you."

Pidge smiled. "That would be great. I actually need to pick your brain. I can't call my brother right now or Brook. They're assigned at Garrison. You are about the only person who could possibly help me remember a memory from our childhood."

Pidge saw that Calleigh was scanning for his location. He granted her access and did the same to her. She was two blocks away_. Sneaky girl! Brandon must have given her a heads up. _ Their friend Brandon was stationed at the GA base where they parked their robots lions.

Pidge realized that the rest of the team was about to get a big surprise. He had never mentioned that he had a long distance relationship with anyone. Now they were about to get blasted by his very vibrant girlfriend.

"Sounds interesting. And guess what? My contract at the hospital just ended and I fully paid off all my medical school loans." Calleigh said.

"I'm proud of you."

Lance was teetering on the verge of impatience. What was Pidge doing? They needed to look around. He wouldn't waste time like this unless this girl was important in finding the map. Then, he saw a very pretty petite girl with dark long red hair coming towards them. She had a strong presence and she was looking right at Pidge.

Calleigh was about to sneak up on Pidge, when he quickly pivoted, "Darn. I thought I had you!" She snapped her fingers.

Pidge smiled. "You know you can never sneak up on me, kitten." He pulled her into a hug, spun her around, and kissed her. "How are you, Calleigh?"

"I'm great!" She kissed Pidge on the cheek. "It's so good to see you. You brought the Voltron Force with you! I remember when you visited the last time, you called me but I had to get to the hospital."

"Sorry I couldn't stay back then." He gave her another squeeze. The team was literally staring with their mouths open. Except Allura. Pidge chuckled. "Everyone, this is Doctor Calleigh Sawyer, my girlfriend."

Calleigh poked Pidge. "What is it you want to know about? You said you wanted to pick my brain?"

"Yeah, I do. Why don't we find a place where we can talk?"

"My apartment is three blocks away. By the way, our friends Karma and Brooke are assigned to the Explorer."

Pidge chuckled. "I can imagine. The Explorer is orbiting Arus at the moment."

As soon they arrived at Calleigh's apartment, she shrugged out of her coat, she gestured her guests towards the dining room.

Pidge was trying to find an opening and realized that he didn't know where to start.

Calleigh smiled at him as she prepared a few refreshments. "You know the beginning is always a good place Pidge. What's on your mind?"

"I'm frustrated because I can't remember where I saw this. Well not this specifically, but something similar." Pidge explained while carried a pitcher of cherry lemonade towards the dinner table.

"Uh huh. And I'm sure this makes sense to them but since they were not here when you were a kid and I was spill." Calleigh set a tray of glasses on the dinner table and gestured to everyone to help themselves.

"Oh, sorry. Let me show you." Pidge held out his Voltcom and showed her a holo-image.

Calleigh blinked at the image and nodded, clearly recognizing the image.

"You remember!" Pidge exclaimed.

Calleigh nodded. "Yes and I can understand why you wouldn't remember. This reminds you of the relic that was in my Grandpa Sawyer's study. You only came with me to the house once and I was only able to show you the relic for a second before we were shooed out by grandma."

"Your grandfather?" Pidge asked.

"Yes…he died three years ago. My dad has it now. He also acquired another one from the Queen of England on Earth. He was going to study the pieces in his spare time. Do you need to see them?" Calleigh asked.

"If possible." Keith said. "The sooner the better. You see, this is a piece of a map that will lead us to the planet that is the source of Voltron's power."

Calleigh sipped her drink. "My great-great-great-grandfather helped with Voltron's circuitry. I didn't know that until my grandpa died and I inherited his family logs. For some reason he didn't want dad to have them. I think it's because of my stepmother or stepbrother but I'm not sure."

"Your stepbrother is a jerk." Pidge said.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows. "You forgot to say that my step-mom is a bitch."

Pidge held up his hands in surrender. "I don't call women names."

Calleigh swatted him. "It's not name calling when it's the truth. My dad emancipated me early so that I could live on my own to relieve the tension in the house." Calleigh looked at the time. "Pidge, if you want we can go now. I don't think it's a good idea for everyone to come because…well…my step mother will be there. If my dad can't get off it will be a stretch to get you in."

"Let's go then." Pidge said, finishing his drink in one gulp.

Calleigh gestured to the kitchen. "Help yourselves to anything. I don't know how long this is going to take. My stepmother probably won't let me into dad's study until he gets there. And if he's tied up that may take a while."

Lance nodded. "We'll be fine. Thanks for the help Dr. Sawyer."

When Pidge and Calleigh left, Lance commented, "She's feisty. I didn't know Pidge had a girlfriend."

Hunk shrugged. "I saw a picture of her on his desk once. When it was clean. He has it under the glass top. So if it's covered with stuff you don't see her. But it's there."

Vince said, "Uh…since her family was directly linked to Voltron's circuitry could it be possible that she is the flame that Aldus mentioned? Her hair is red…she seems to have a spirited personality. Or am I mental?"

Keith shook his head. "No, I think you are on to something. The only way we'll know for sure is if one of the lions picks her. Yellow picked Daigo." Keith recalled, thinking about how the unmanned robot lion stepped towards Daigo and bowed to him. It was clear that Daigo was destined to ride Yellow Lion. It was the sign that Kalan needed to give Daigo his blessing.

For now, they had to wait for Pidge and Calleigh to return.


	3. Chapter 3

Here is the next chapter. Enjoy. I am slowing down my updates. I know but I have been busy at home and work. Amber

HWFTL Chapter 3 VF

Seated inside a taxi cab with Calleigh, Pidge was nervous. He hadn't seen Calleigh's father in a couple years. He was a great guy, but Pidge wasn't eager to see Calleigh's stepfamily.

Calleigh decided to ring her father on her mobile phone. "Hey daddy! You busy? When can you get free? Guess who is here! You'll never guess!"

She had her mobile on speaker-mode. Pidge could hear the man chuckle. "Well, given your excitement I'd guess you meant Pidge Stoker."

Pidge rolled his eyes. "Hi, Mr Sawyer."

"Hello, Pidge. Welcome home…even if it is briefly."

Calleigh bit her lip. "Daddy, seriously. When can you meet us at the house? Pidge needs to look at your relics, the cloth ones in the glass cases. It's important because it's about Voltron. Remember what I told you about the logs?"

"I do, sweetheart. I can be at the house in an hour. It shouldn't be a problem; Scarlet is there."

"Dad, she likes to torture me. She'll make us wait until you arrive all the while giving Pidge and me evil looks."

"I prefer the term protective. I'll call the doorman to give you clearance to go upstairs." Calvin replied.

Calleigh never argued to her father about her stepfamily. It wouldn't be fair. She made it a point to not become a wedge in their relationship. Scarlet was nice to her in front of her dad but when they were alone, she was an ice queen. Calleigh didn't care; she was used to it. So, she would wait for her father to come home if it was necessary.

Once the cab pulled up to the apartment building, Calleigh paid the cab driver, and walked up to the door man.

"Good Afternoon Calleigh. Elevator three will take you and your guest straight up. You should know that Mrs. Scarlet is home. Paul is with her," the doorman said.

Pidge swallowed a groan. Paul used to bully him in school. He was two years older than him and felt that the universe evolved around him and his ego. The elevator ride was short.

The door opened before Calleigh could disengage the lock herself. The woman before them was tall with dyed white hair with black streaks.

"Hi Scarlet. Do you remember Darrell Stoker? Pidge?" Calleigh tried to smile at stepmother.

Scarlet Sawyer glared at them. "We weren't expecting you. Paul brought his fiancé over and we were going to have a nice dinner with Cal."

Calleigh was not deterred. "How nice." She stepped inside and pulled Pidge with her. "Dad said I could come to the house. I'm sorry if it is a bad time. We need to examine a couple of dad's relics. If you will let us, I can meet dad at his office with Pidge."

Scarlet turned red. "You are not allowed in your father's office without him."

Calleigh sighed. "I'm twenty-two not twelve years old. I won't touch anything."

"You think I'm going to be responsible for your carelessness. If you ask me, you don't need to see them at all. They are priceless and mean a lot to your father. He paid a great deal of money for the one from Earth."

Pidge calmly placed his hands on Calleigh's shaking shoulders. "We'll wait until Calvin gets here. He'll be here in about an hour." Pidge said to Scarlet.

"He doesn't get off until six." Scarlet snapped.

Calleigh growled. "He's getting off early because I told him Pidge was here. You know how much Pidge means to me."

Scarlet narrowed her eyes. "He's reckless. Your father won't say it, but I certainly will."

Calleigh's eyes filled with angry tears but she held them at bay. "He isn't. I would appreciate it if you would for once be nice while my dad isn't here."

"Don't speak to me like that, young lady. You will respect me." Scarlet demanded, tilting her chin haughtily.

Calleigh replied in a firm voice, "Respect is a two way street. So, unless you want Paul's precious fiancé to see that you are a two-faced bitch, you'd better straighten up. My dad loves you very much and it would hurt him unbelievably if he knew half of what you did to make my life miserable. So what is it going to be?"

Pidge could see the look of fury on Scarlet's face.

If Scarlet could strangle Calleigh and get away with it at that moment, she would have. To Scarlet's credit, she bit down on her temper and gestured inside. "Come in and have a drink. You can't go in the study."

Calleigh considered it a small victory. She would see how long her step mother could keep her manners in check. Now it was time for battle number two.

They went into the den where a gas fireplace was burning. A laugh carried across the room that made Calleigh's hair stand on end. The girl sitting in her step brother's lap was blond and beautiful. She was giggling at one of his jokes then Paul kissed her passionately. Paul chuckled as they entered. "Sorry, mom."

Calleigh sat on the couch across from him. "Not your mom," she said dryly. "Who's the lucky girl?"

The girl looked Calleigh up and down then gave Pidge the same treatment. "Who are they?"

Paul scowled. "This is my stepsister Calleigh and…well I'll be a monkey's uncle, Darrell Stoker. How's your sister?"

Pidge ignored the leer in Paul's voice and answered, "She's fine. She accepted a commission at Garrison."

The blond girl smiled. "I'm Krista Enders. You look familiar. Green…didn't you fly green lion? Why did you stop?"

Paul chuckled. "He probably got demoted."

Pidge managed to keep his anger in check. "Not demoted. My role with the team changed. I'm their computer engineer and strategist."

"Right." Paul teased.

"Shut up, Paul. Pidge is a genius and you'd like him if you'd give him half a chance." Calleigh bristled.

"He's a geek and when was the last time you saw him?"

Pidge literally had to hold Calleigh's arm to keep her from launching herself at her him. "I can't help it if I'm smart and it's none of your business when I see Calleigh."

The blond looked sympathetic. "You live on Arus, right? With the Voltron Force and she's here on Balto. How do you do it?"

Pidge liked this girl. She appeared friendly enough. He smiled genuinely at Calleigh. "By savoring the time we do have together and talk whenever we can. It can be hard, but I can't imagine loving anyone else."

Calleigh leaned over and kissed him softly.

Mrs. Sawyer walked in, carrying a tray. She had two glasses of ice water and three martini's. She handed Calleigh and Pidge the glasses with water.

Mrs. Sawyer picked up the conversation. "So, Krista, have you decided on the colors for your wedding, dear? We'll help with anything. Just ask."

Calleigh was grateful for the small talk. She could be pleasant enough. When Krista asked her opinion on the best shade of orange. Calleigh happily gave her opinion. She then pulled out her wallet and showed her swatch of fabric material. "I am going to do some accent pillows in this color. It's fabulous. You can have it if you want."

"Oh! It's great! Look, Paul, isn't it great?" Krista squealed.

Paul, whose expression looked like he just ate a dozen lemons, managed to answer with an enthusiastic voice, "It is. Whatever you want, baby."

Pidge was doing his best not to laugh. Calleigh was smiling and equally enjoying her stepbrother's discomfort. It was a small victory, but he deserved it.

Scarlet Sawyer hid her displeasure by taking a large swallow of her martini. The conversation went back and forth between Calleigh and Krista.

Paul stood up and made more martinis. He brought out a carafe and filled his and his mother's drinks.

When the main door opened, Pidge turned and smiled at the person that stood in the doorway.

Calvin Sawyer and Pidge acknowledged each other with a nod.

Scarlet went over and kissed him. "Hello darling. This is Krista. She is Paul's fiancée. I thought we were having dinner tonight?"

Calvin addressed Krista with a hand shake. "Nice to meet you, Krista." Then he addressed his wife. "We will have dinner, but since Calleigh and Pidge are here, don't you want to extend them an invitation dearest?"

Krista smiled. "I didn't even know Paul had a sister! We've been dating for…how long now, sweetie?"

Paul, knowing that this was going bite him, tried to dodge the question.

But Calleigh quickly nipped that in the bud. "Yes…how long, Paul?" Calleigh asked sweetly.

Paul scowled at her and answered, "Six months. I proposed last night."

Pidge shook Paul's hand and considered it the money shot. "Congratulations on your engagement. She's a nice girl."

Paul looked down at Krista and smiled. "Yes…she is." He put his arm around her fiancée almost possessively.

Mr. Sawyer shook Pidge's hand now. "Pidge…Calleigh, let's go to my office for a moment." He ushered them towards his office.

"Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes, Cal." Scarlet said.

"There's time yet. We'll be back in plenty of time." Calvin replied, looking over his shoulder. He went to a sealed door and used a voice recognition program and retinal scanner. The doors unlocked and they went inside.

Calleigh hugged her father. "Hey daddy."

"Hi honey." He looked over at Pidge. "How are you, son? It is nice to see you in person for a change."

"It's good to see you too, sir. I am sorry for the unexpected visit."

"Unexpected, but welcomed. You make my little girl happy and that is all that matters to me. I wish you could be together more often."

"Daddy, that isn't possible. I had my contract with the hospital to pay back my medical school loans." Calleigh said. "I know you offered to pay them but that didn't feel right to me. I wanted to do it myself."

"I know, darling. But now your contract is over and you can if you wish explore your options."

Pidge didn't know what to think. He would love to have his girlfriend around more. But moving to Arus or onto the den ship would be a big change for her_. She doesn't need to know about that yet._ He had to get back on track. "Mr. Sawyer, you have some relics that are very old. You inherited one and acquired the other from Earth. Can I see them?"

Calvin walked over to a cabinet. He accessed another retinal scanner and opened the cabinet's doors. Inside, were two sealed glass boxes.

Pidge could feel adrenaline running through him. He swallowed. "Sir, I don't have to touch them. But, may I take a picture instead? It's very important. I promise I won't publish them or anything; that it will be just for my knowledge and the Voltron Force."

"You can, and I appreciate that you are sensitive to how precious these items are to me."

While Pidge took several pictures, Calvin walked towards his wine cabinet, poured himself a drink.

Once Pidge finished taking several photos using his Voltcom, he turned to Calvin, "Sir…there are—"

"—Two more like these.I know. I only have a clue as to the location of one. It was entrusted to the Raimon Family on Arus. I was able to trace the object and the last person who had it was King Alestar, who then gave it to his grandson Aldus on his sixteenth birthday, before he went to Earth to study at the GA."

"Larmina's father." Pidge murmured.

"Sorry?"

"Lady Larmina Raimon is Prince Aldus' daughter. He died before she was born. I'm not sure if she has it or not. But now, we know where to start looking."

Calvin nodded. "The Baltan people have an honored tradition and a vested interest in Voltron. We depend on Voltron for survival. The mighty robot is the symbol of peace and justice that unites five worlds in harmony. The lions represent each world."

Pidge's eyes widened at this revelation. Pidge even knew which lion represented which world. "Green represents Balto, Red represents Earth, Yellow's Ariel, Blue is Arus, and Black is Voltronix."

"You have a very perceptive mind." He held the boxes to Pidge. "Take them. If these relics are needed to aide in Voltron's journey I will be happy to entrust them to you. Just promise me that you will return them when you can."

"I will." Pidge replied solemnly, taking the precious relics.

Calleigh opened her purse, which was large enough to fit both items. "Put those in here. If Scarlet sees you holding these she'll go thermal."

Calvin chuckled. "That she will. She doesn't come in here often. But she may come in to check on the relics after her son and fiancée leave. Now let us go onto the roof terrace dinner should be ready. I will skin my wife if she hasn't set places for you."

Pidge chuckled. He knew Scarlet Sawyer was too savvy not to. She wouldn't reveal her hand about her feelings for Calleigh by being caddy; or perhaps because Scarlet knew where her bread was buttered, with her husband?

Pidge sent a message to the Force via his voltcom and ordered them a bunch of pizzas to be delivered to Calleigh's home. He mentioned that he had the two relics but diplomatically couldn't leave yet. He knew the queen would appreciate his polite gesture.

Scarlet was just placing a vegetable tray on the table when they came up to the terrace. "There you are, Cal." She kissed him. "Martin will have dinner up in ten minutes."

"Wonderful." He went to the wine refrigerator and opened a bottle of white wine. He pulled down six glasses poured and served. "To family and friends."

They all raised their glasses together "Cheers."

They talked about various subjects for about an hour while they ate their fabulous dinner of duck and asparagus when they heard a loud roar.

Scarlet and Krista both screamed.

Pidge wheeled around and stared open mouthed. "Red? What?"

Voltron's Red Lion was hovering inches above their heads.

Pidge engaged his Voltcom. "Lance!" he barked.

"Go ahead, Pidge. This pizza you sent is killer, Pidge!" Lance enthused.

"You're not in your lion?" Pidge asked, surprised.

"No. I'm eating like everyone else." Lance replied, sounding perplexed.

Calleigh was smiling. "He's just saying hello, Pidge. Look he's waving at you."

"Oh!" Pidge raised his brows, looking surprised.

Red let out a giant roar again, and then he took off, heading back to the GA base.

Paul was red as a beat. "What was that thing doing?"

Pidge could see that he had spilled his wine all over himself. "He was letting Calleigh know he likes her."

"It is my favorite color. That was so cool. Did you program the Red Lion to do that?" Calleigh asked.

"No I didn't. The Lions don't fly unpiloted unless they are provoked. In this case he was provoked by sensing someone with a strong connection to him. Sensing someone who was related to an original creator."

Calleigh's mouth flew open. "Me?"

"Calleigh, you even told me when you were little you wanted to learn how to fly. Don't tell me you don't want to anymore?"

"But, I'm a doctor now…how—?"

"—And it would give you an excuse to be near me." Pidge smiled.

Wordlessly staring at Pidge, Calleigh swallowed hard. Oh, would she dare? She was living a comfortable life as a doctor on Balto. She also had multiple job offers lined up. But was that what she wanted? No. She wanted an adventure. Pidge was giving her everything she could possibly want and it would begin and end with the Defender of the Universe.

Her father's eyes were twinkled. "Calleigh Ann Sawyer you better take this opportunity and grab it by the horns. It may never come again. You can be a doctor on Arus."

She relaxed a bit and smiled. "I could indeed."

Pidge saw the answer in her eyes and pulled her into a fierce hug. "Welcome aboard."


	4. Chapter 4

Hi every one! Thanks for the follows and the reviews. I so appreciate them. Love writing. But I have been working a lot thanks to mother nature and her unusual winter blast on the east coast. I am going to be working on corruption over the next few weeks and hopefully more of this story as well. Thanks for reading! Amblewat aka Amber

HWFTL Chapter 4 VF

Pidge and Calleigh went back to the apartment and found everyone sitting in various spots in the living room and dining room. Pidge noticed that the table was clean.

Keith looked up as they entered. "Well?"

"Red came to the apartment building where Calleigh and I were having dinner with her dad on the roof terrace of the penthouse," Pidge said.

Lance raised an eyebrow. "And I wasn't flying her. I told you that."

Pidge nodded. "He was provoked. Just like when Black felt threatened when we tried fixing the nexus. Only this time he was lured to someone he felt a connection too."

Allura spoke, "Calleigh…he was drawn to Calleigh. She is related to one of Voltron's creators. Red has chosen her to follow Lance."

Pidge stared at Allura in awe. How could she possibly know that? This was not the first time that she had sensed things. He nodded. "There's more I need to tell you." Pidge then briefed them on what Calleigh's father revealed about each lion representing a founding planet and Voltron symbolically uniting them forever. He told them about the information about the last piece of the map."

Larmina frowned. "I don't have it. I would have recognized it on Ariel. Maybe there is something in my father's journals…or his…I have to go down there." Her usually confident voice quivered.

Allura pulled her into a hug. "Shhhh. It's okay. I'll go look. You don't have to."

Larmina swallowed. "I do have to. It's only right. I resisted because I didn't want to feel sad. I have to go."

Keith felt sorry for her. He couldn't imagine what it had been like for her. Allura didn't even have memories of her father to share with her. The only one that did was Coran and they were very few and probably not as personal. The information was a lot to absorb.

Then, Pidge spoke to Calleigh, "I'd like to look at the logs you inherited while we are going back."

"Alright. But we need to move. My Step mother is going to be very peeved when she finds out that Pidge and I have the relics. Granted they belong to my father and he lent them to us but she won't see it that way." She hurried into her room and began to pack some clothes.

Pidge came in to help her. She had a lot more but they could have that sent to Arus. Pidge pulled her into his arms. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Calleigh gave him a fierce look. "Hell yes!"

The lions flew remotely to Calleigh's building. This time, Pidge flew with Lance and Calleigh in Red.

They made it to Arus in record time and left the lions in the hanger. They were all exhausted.

Daigo was nervous as they entered the castle.

Lance opened a door it was Vince and Daniel's room. He went to an empty panel and pulled. A bed came out.

Daigo nodded. "Thanks."

Meanwhile, Pidge took Calleigh to another room. It had a double bed, desk, closet, and dresser. Pidge said. "We are renovating a wing for the Voltron Force Pilots so that we can each have an apartment. But it's taking time. I know it's small."

Calleigh put her duffle in the closet. "It's fine."

Pidge pulled her into his arms. "Have I kissed you properly yet?"

Calleigh tilted her head. "Hmmm. I don't think so. We haven't had enough time." Then she closed the distance between them. A knock was heard at the door.

Pidge cursed and opened it to find Lance standing there. Lance cleared his throat. "Briefing tomorrow at Castle Control 700 hours. The new recruits will get their Volt-coms then. It's a double briefing with the Voltron Vehicle team. They are staying in the barracks for the evening."

Pidge nodded. "Do Vince and Daigo know?"

"Hunk just told them. Good night. Try to get some sleep."

Pidge was not going to take Lance's bait. He simply cocked his head. "What else would we be doing? It's late and we've been on the move for about thirty hours now."

Lance raised his eyebrows. "Geez…I don't know. Aren't you supposed to be a genius?"

Calleigh came over and put her arm around his shoulders. "He sure is mine. Don't worry, Lance. Sleep is exactly what we have in mind."

Lance scowled. "I'm going to bed. Good night. Hunk has first watch. I don't know if you have next or not."

Pidge pulled up the data on his Voltcom. "It's you. Looks like you will be at control at six in the morning. Sucks for Hunk. He won't be able to get sleep until after the briefing."

Lance yawned. "Good night. Don't do what I wouldn't do."

Pidge rolled his eyes. "That's a real high standard, Lance." He closed the door and he could all but feel the heat in the room rise. Or maybe it was his blood he wasn't sure. He turned around just in time to catch his girlfriend in his arms. Pidge automatically walked them to the bed. Sleep he decided could wait.

VFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVFVF

Keith went up to the royal residence. His wife was looking at an old photo album. She didn't even hear him come in. He put his Voltcom in the charging station, then as per his habit stripped of everything but his boxer briefs. He climbed into bed beside her. She jumped. Keith raised an eyebrow. "I won't bite you know." He teased.

"Sorry. I was distracted."

Keith looked at the picture. He could see a younger King Alfor standing beside a woman who was sitting holding an infant. A teenage boy was standing next to her beaming. Allura answered his unspoken question. "This was the last picture that was taken of us before Aldus went to the GA."

Keith looked at the woman. Allura looked like her in a lot of ways but he could see some differences. Keith kissed Allura's temple. "Your mother was beautiful. Larmina has her father's eyes. Where did she get the red hair from?"

Allura sniffed in disgust. "She looks a lot like her mother."

Keith being a smart man dropped the subject. Instead, he kissed her.

With their passion growing rapidly, instinct quickly took over. They were desperate for each other. Time stood still for Keith and Allura. Nothing could stop the need between them. The urge to be together was desperate, almost primal.

Afterwards, they held each other for a long time.

Then, beautiful warmth filled Allura's belly, filling her heart with love. She lost her breath, her heart pounding.

"You're trembling," Keith murmured as he held Allura in his arms.

Allura swallowed. Trying to calm herself at the sudden warm rush of energy below her navel, she let out a slow exhale. Gazing at Keith, she brushed her fingers against his rough jaw. "I'm alright." In that very moment, deep within her soul, she _knew_.


End file.
